The manager at ralphs will simply pass on his expenses. It is pretty easy to follow the commodity trail. Start at the cost of water and fuel. People who grow everything from fruits/vegetables to feed for cattle/pigs etc incur higher prices. Increasing fuel prices also impact them and the transporters who are needed for the supply chain. Cotton and other things that are grown for textiles and clothing are affected. Pretty much everything at the base is affected and as you move up the manufacturing chain additional costs are added.
The manager at Ralphs has nothing to do with it. he is simply the endpoint in the supply chain.
The other thing is that you are making an implicit assumption about inflation and that is you are accepting the statistics carte blanche. I guess personally I am more skeptical. I don’t believe the unemployment stats and I don’t believe the inflation stats. I simply look back on my on ledger for what I spend on food and clothing over the past few years and the increase is noticeable. Same with my electric and gas bills for the same home. Much more then the 1 or 2% I am being told by the govt.
